These healthy recipes taste just like the original!
Who needs the take-out line when you have our best copycat recipes! These healthier takes on take-out food taste just like the originals but with significantly less fat and calories. Plus, they’re all easy to make and will cost a fraction of what the restaurant charges. It doesn’t get any better than that!
Some of these recipes are direct copycats from popular restaurant dishes (I’m looking at you, Chipotle’s Cilantro Lime Basmati Rice). Others are our skinnied-up versions of a classic, like fried rice and nachos. No matter which one you choose to make tonight, you will be so happy you skipped the take-out line with our best copycat recipes. Your wallet and your waistline will thank you.
1. Mongolian Beef PF Chang’s Style
Sometimes, skipping the takeout line isn’t just about saving calories: it can save you a ton of money, too! PF Changs might be delicious, but it’s certainly not cheap. Make their famous Mongolian Beef at home for a fraction of the cost. Plus you’ll save yourself from overdosing on sodium: a single serving at the restaurant has almost 70% of your daily recommended intake!
2. Cilantro Lime Basmati Rice
Make a healthier burrito without sacrificing any flavor at all! A single serving Chipotle’s rice clocks in a 210 calories, 4 grams of fat, and 40 grams of carbohydrate. We made a few smart ingredient swaps to make our copycat recipe taste just as good as the original (with half the calories).
3. Chicken Burrito Bowl with Fresh Pico de Gallo & Creamy Chipotle Sauce
Now that you know how to make Chipotle’s famous rice, you can make the real-deal burrito bowl at home! Our recipe has fewer than 400 calories a serving. You’ll still get flavorful chicken, juicy pico de gallo, and a deliciously creamy sauce. All without any the associated guilt!
4. Asian Chicken Wraps
Our low-carb Asian Chicken Wraps taste a lot like the famous PF Changs appetizer. These wraps have so much flavor between the stir-fry sauce and the dipping sauce. Combine that with the cashews, mushrooms, and lean protein from the chicken, and you won’t feel like you’re missing out on anything at all!
5. Olive Garden Chicken Piadina
It’s hard not to love this Italian-flavored, cheesy flatbread sandwich, but I certainly don’t love the way I feel after eating it. Our copycat recipe has all the great flavors of the original, but we use low-fat ingredients to keep the calories and saturated fat low. I’m definitely going to skip the take-out line with this one because it’s one of our best copycat recipes!
6. Cheesecake Factory’s Southern Fried Chicken Sliders
We ditched the fryer in our skinnier version of the Cheesecake Factory’s famous Southern comfort food dish. Oven baking the chicken is not only healthier, but it’s so much easier, too: the chicken is “fried” in only 10 minutes! Add in some whole wheat buns, crunchy lettuce, sliced tomato, and a few dill pickle slices and you’ll be in copycat heaven.
7. Instant Pot Chicken Posole Verde
It’s easy to say no to Mexican take-out when you have an Instant Pot filled with flavorful posole waiting for you at home! We made a healthier version of this hearty stew that uses lean chicken breasts swimming in a tangy tomatillo sauce. Yum!
8. Slow Cooker Lo Mein
You don’t need take-out to enjoy great Asian food. Our Lo Mein recipe is so easy; you can make it in a slow cooker! We designed our recipe to be fully customizable, so you can swap-in any veggies you have on hand. It’s fully take-out quality without requiring a restaurant cheat day.
9. Connie and Ted’s Celebrity Salad
This salad is on the menu at one of the best seafood restaurants in Los Angeles, and you’ll be hooked after one bite. It’s a super simple salad of tomatoes dressed in balsamic and olive oil, and a pinch of sea salt really brings out the tomato’s natural flavors. Add in some fresh basil and green onions, and you’ve just found your new favorite salad!
10. Slow Cooker Protein Chicken Tacos
It might be Taco Tuesday, but you don’t have to wait in the take-out line to get the best tacos of your life. Make them at home in the slow cooker instead! Unlike the restaurant version, these tacos are protein-packed and low-calorie (but they taste just as good).
11. Bonefish Grill Bang-Bang Shrimp
Craving crispy-fried shrimp dunked in a deliciously creamy dipping sauce? I know the feeling! Instead of hitting the take-out line, check out one of our best copycat recipes. Our Bang-Bang Shrimp copycat is oven fried, and our skinny sauce is just as tasty as the original.
12. Baked Chicken and Vegetable Spring Rolls
Did you know you can make spring rolls at home? Not only can you make them, but you can make them healthier by baking them instead of dropping them in a deep fryer! Sounds pretty win-win to me.
13. Portobello Mushroom Philly Cheesesteak
I don’t know about you, but I crave Philly Cheesesteak sandwiches from a restaurant down the street from my house all the time. It’s hard to say no when that craving hits! Now, I just make this vegetarian version at home instead. I don’t even miss the meat, and my waistline seriously thanks me!
14. Healthier Olive Garden Garlic Rosemary Chicken Recipe
People go crazy over this Olive Garden dish. While I’ll admit it’s totally delicious, it’s not really worth the guilt I feel after filling up on bottomless bread! I can’t help myself, so I’ll skip the trip to Olive Garden altogether and make this just-as-tasty Garlic Rosemary Chicken recipe at home.
15. Barbecue Chicken and Avocado Quesadillas
I’m a sucker for the appetizer menu at my local Mexican restaurant. Every time I go there for happy hour drinks after work, I end up ordering a quesadilla to-go. Finding this healthy copycat recipe has saved me countless calories (and dollars).
16. Restaurant-Style Chicken Fried Rice
There’s no reason that fried rice should be unhealthy. After all, it’s a great combination of complex carbohydrates, protein-filled eggs, and nutrient-dense veggies, right? Well, that’s how we made our recipe! You won’t be disappointed that you skipped the take-out line when you dish this one up.
17. Red Lobster’s Cheddar Biscuits
It’s hard not to eat a thousand of these biscuits every time you hit up a Red Lobster. They’re just too good, but they’re also terrible for you! We created a gluten-free version that everyone can enjoy. Serve ’em hot and fresh from the oven, and the plate will disappear right before your eyes.
18. Cauliflower Nachos
This 228 calorie recipe is one of our best copycat recipes! It tastes just as good as restaurant-style nachos, but we make low-carb “chips” out of cooked cauliflower. How cool is that?
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